"It was imprudent of us, in the first place, to become authors. We could have become something regular, but we managed not to.We were lucky, but we were also determined." Roy Blount Jr

"I don’t change the facts to enhance the drama. I think of it the other way round, the drama has got to fit the facts, and it’s your job as a writer to find the shape in real life." Hilary Mantel

Tuesday, May 02, 2006

Beautiful Bratislava

I will no doubt have a great deal to report about the England portion of my trip, in particular an entire day spent at Hampton Court. My blog readers may recall that I was extremely interested in (okay, obsessed with!) a particular painting that hangs in the palace--the female protagonist of my work-in-progress. Not to mention the King and Queen with whom she and my male protagonist interacted. I did indeed view her portrait. The sun shone on the palace gardens she would have known so well...but I'll save my musings on that topic for another time.

For now, I introduce the wonderful and welcoming city of Bratislava, in Slovakia.

I was royally treated by the staff of Ikar, my publishing house. Since October, they have produced 3 of my novels in Slovakian, in both hardcover and paperback editions--with another title coming by the end of the year.

I offer abundant thanks to all for their hospitality: the time spent showing me the Old Town, the delicious lunch at KOGO, the press conference that included so many attentive and interested journalists and photographers (print and broadcast). This has been an incredible opportunity to promote my novels to a new audience. With extra special thanks going to Ivana, my interpreter, for her hard work!

Here I am in a bookshop, thrilled to see my books so prominently displayed.